112 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
February  9,  1899. 
AT^STRALIE  AND  ]\IR.  T.  CARRINGTOX. 
The  Classification  Committee  of  the  N.C.S,  has  bracketed  the’e  two 
Tarieties  as  being  either  “  synonymous,  or  too-much-alike,”  which 
is  surely  an  error.  In  spite  of  the  classification,  Mr.  T.  Carrington 
will  forge  for  itself  a  reputation,  and  Avill  occupy  a  prominent  position. 
It  is  quite  distinct  from  Australie,  both  in  colour  and  form.  The 
former  is  richer  and  clearer,  the  florets  are  smoother  and  more  even, 
and  they  are  less  wliirled,  and  no  judge  could  have  the  least  trouble  in 
noticing  a  difference  between  these  two. 
They  are  much  more  distinct  than  Pride  of  Madford  and  Duke  of 
York,  or  Mrs.  ]\Iease  and  Cl.  J.  Warren  ;  in  fact,  a  bloom  from  an 
early  bud  of  the  latter  could  easily  be  shown  as  Mrs.  Mease,  and  with¬ 
out  doubt  has  been  done  with  success.  Of  course  I  do  not  argue  that 
G.  J.  Warren  and  Mrs.  Mease  should  be  bracketed  as  too-much-alike, 
but  that  Australie  and  ]\Ir.  T.  Carrington  are  distinct. — W.  J.  Godfrey. 
'  CAN  IT  BE  TRUE  ? 
The  other  day  a  leading  morning  paper  recorded  the  wind-up  cf 
the  affairs  of  a  suburban  Chrysanthemum  society,  which  took  place 
prior  to  disbanding.  The  failure  of  a  Chrysanthemum  society  at  all 
is  something  novel,  but  the  decision  arrived  at  by  the  members  of  this 
particular  body  may  sound  even  more  astonishing.  It  was  to  the 
effect  that  they  were  of  the  opinion  that  the  Chrysanthemum  craze  is 
on  the  wane  and  the  public  popularity  of  the  flovver  declining.  I 
wonder  what  the  champions  of  the  ^^auturnn  queen  have  to  say  to 
this  ?  It  may  be  only  the  pessimistic  cry  of  an  unsuccessful  society, 
who  attribute  the  faiiure  to  the  change  of  public  taste.  Be  that  as  it 
may,  the  announcement  was  boldly  made,  and  will,  perhaps,  lead 
many  to  wonder  whether  the  reign  of  the  au  umn  queen  is  approach¬ 
ing  its  end.  Dame  Fashion  is  fickle,  and  takes  unlooked  for  courses 
sometimes. — G- 
CATALOGUES  AT  SHOWS. 
In  reference  to  your  report  of  the  shows  and  meetings  of  the 
People’s  Palace  Horticultural  Society  (page  93),  I  desire  to  say  that, 
while  I  w’ish  all  success  to  the  Society,  I  am  bound  to  protest  against 
the  action  of  the  Secretary  or  judges,  under  the  following  circumstances : 
I  was  asked  to  favour  the  show  with  an  exhibit  “  not  for  competi¬ 
tion.”  I  sent  six  dozen  cut  blooms,  and,  as  is  customary  at  shows 
generally,  my  representative  placed  some  of  my  catalogues  by  the  side 
of  the  exhibit  for  the  people  to  take.  When  the  judges  came  to  them 
the  catalogues  were  at  once  thrown  under  the  table  and  not  allowed  to 
be  distributed.  The  Society  is  affiliated  with  the  N.C.S.,  and  the 
judges,  as  stated  in  your  report,  were  Messrs.  R.  Ballantine,  R.  Dean, 
and  T.  W.  Sanders. 
I  have  written  to  l\Ir.  C.  E.  Osborn,  the  Secretary,  and  as  I  cannot 
get  a  satisfactory  answer,  I  now  publicly  ask  the  Committee  if  they 
sanction  such  an  extraordinary  proceeding  as  I  have  described  ?  I, 
with  other  non-competitive  exhibitors,  have  distributed  catalogues  at 
most  of  the  best  shows  in  the  kingdom,  and  this  is  the  only  instance 
known  to  me  of  such  summary  action. 
I  should  like  to  know  who  threw  my  catalogues  under  the  table, 
and  why  ?  Also  if  any  exhibitor,  who  was  invited  to  assist  a  show,  has 
ever  been  similarly  treated  before  ? — W.  Wells,  Earhivood. 
SHEFFIELD  CHRYSANTHEMUM  SOCIETY. 
On  Wednesday,  the  1st  inst.,  the  annual  meeting  of  this  Society 
was  held,  when  a  large  number  of  the  members  testified  their  interest 
in  the  Society  by  attending  to  take  part  in  the  election  of  the  Committee 
and  other  officials  for  the  current  year.  IMr.  John  G.  Newsham  was 
elected  to  the  chair,  and  commenced  the  business  by  calling  upon  the 
Secretary  to  read  out  the  statements  of  accounts  which  had  been 
previously  passed  by  the  auditors. 
Favourable  weather  (for  November)  at  the  last  show,  which  was, 
as  a  whole,  much  better  than  previous  ones,  brought  a  large  number 
of  visitors  together,  and  resulted  in  increasing  the  funds  of  the 
Society,  and  the  balance  of  cash  in  the  bank  and  the  Treasurer’s 
hands  is  £24  more  than  at  the  corresponding  date  last  year.  The 
Society  is  financially  and  numerically  in  a  better  position  than  it  has 
ever  been  since  its  foundation.  Its  cash  balance  is  now  £70  12s.  4d., 
with  a  reserve  fund  of  £50  ISs.  9d.  In  consequence  of  the  uncer¬ 
tainty  of  the  weather  at  the  time  the  Society’s  shows  are  held,  it  is 
considered  advisable  to  further  increase  the  reserve  fund  to  provide 
for  the  proverbial  “  rainy  day,”  which  it  is,  however,  hoped  will  not 
put  in  an  appearance  for  a  long  time  to  come. 
C.  E.  Jeffcock,  Esip,  the  popular  President  of  the  Society  for  some 
years  past,  has  thought  it  advisable,  in  consequence  of  removing  from 
Sheffield,  to  resign  the  presidency,  and  in  future  take  up  a  position 
amongst  the  V.-P.’s.  The  alteration  was  greatly  regretted  by  the 
Society.  W.  A.  Milner,  Esq.,  J.P.,  of  Totley  Hall,  was  unanimously 
elected  President  in  the  place  of  Mr.  Jeffcock.  Mr.  Milner,  of 
Daffodil  fame,  who  has  always  taken  a  great  interest  in  the  Societv, 
will  be  a  most  valuable  and  popular  gentleman  to  be  at  the  head  of 
the  officials,  wdio  are  fortunate  in  being  able  to  get  him  to  accept  his 
present  position. 
With  two  exceptions  in  the  Committee  the  whole  of  the  other 
officials  were  re-elected.  The  annual  dinner  will  take  place  on  the 
18th  inst.  in  the  Masonic  Hall.  The  proceedings  terminated  with  a 
vote  of  thanks  to  the  Chairman. — J.  H.  S. 
SWEET  PEAS. 
How  popular  these  flowers  have  become  is  indicated  by  the  collec¬ 
tions,  trade  and  otherwise,  seen  at  summer  shows.  The  prizes  given 
in  competition  for  bouquets,  stands  for  effect,  and  dinner- table  decora¬ 
tions  at  Shrewsbury  and  elsewhere  are  encouraging,  and  as  the  flowers 
can  be  grown  by  the  cottager  as  well  as  by  gardeners  they  have 
become  highly  popular.  No  flower  lends  itself  better  to  a  greater 
variety  of  uses  than  these,  and  what  a  range  of  colour  ! — from  purest 
white  to  deepest  purple  in  every  shade  imaginable. 
As  the  time  approaches  when  cultivators  are  busy  laying  plans  for 
seed  sowing,  a  few  hints  may  be  acceptable  on  growing  Sweet  Peas. 
Where  early  flowers  are  needed,  it  is  usual  to  sow  in  October;  but  if 
a  few  seeds  are  mixed  with  soil  thickly,  and  kept  moist  in  a  warm 
house,  they  will  soon  be  on  the  move  ;  gradually  harden  before  trans¬ 
planting,  or  the  reaction  in  consigning  them  direct  to  the  ground  would 
be  injurious.  A  trench  should  have  been  prepared  on  a  south  border  or 
in  a  warm  nook,  with  \veil  decayed  manure  as  a  base.  Over  this  place 
some  old  potting  soil,  or  any  such  mixture  that  is  light  and  fairly  dry. 
Level  down,  and  then  carefully  sow  the  mixture  of  sprouted  Peas  and 
soil  together  thinly  over  the  width  of  the  trench,  covering  with  about 
2  inches  more  of  the  old  potting  soil.  The  plants  will  soon  be  through, 
and  as  the  sides  of  the  trenches  are  considerably  higher  than  the 
growing  Peas,  these  will  be  sheltered  from  the  keen  IMarch  winds. 
I  do  not  favour  dense  shelter,  such  as  Yew  or  Fir  boughs,  in  too 
close  proximity  to  the  Peas,  as  these  must  necessarily  cause  them  to 
grow  spindly ;  rather  use  in  preference  a  few  well  twigged  tops  of 
Hazel  Doughs  rather  thickly,  and,  wherer  possible,  use  new  sticks,  as 
the  plants  never  take  so  kindly  to  old  ones  as  to  these.  It  is  half  the 
battle  to  encourage  free  early  growth.  For  later  crops  the  sowings 
should  be  made  at  an  interval  of  six  weeks,  say  early  in  March  and  late 
in  April,  in  prepared  trenches  in  the  open.  Sow  thinly,  and  allow 
each  plant  full  scope  for  development ;  otherwise,  instead  of  having 
finely  developed  flowers  on  long  stalks,  they  would,  on  the  contrary, 
be  short-stalked,  bearing  at  best  pairs  of  undersized  flowers  only. 
Nothing  pays  better  for  liberal  treatment  than  the  Pea  tribe.  In 
dry  periods  good  waterings  are  necessary,  using  either  diluted  liquid 
manure  or  some  fertiliser,  such  as  soot,  in  moderation,  the  rows  to  be 
afterwards  mulched  with  short  manure.  A  cooler  situation  is  advised 
for  the  last  sowing,  or  the  plants  suffer  considerably  from  heat  and 
drought  in  dry  summers.  AVhen  wanted  for  embellishment  the  flowers 
need  cutting  early  in  the  morning,  as  they  retain  their  freshness  much 
longer. 
Birds,  mice,  and  weevils  are  enemies  of  the  plants,  and  need 
watching  and  guarding  against.  Especially  does  this  apply  to  the 
first  sowings,  when  food  in  the  form  of  green  stuff  runs  scarce. 
As  regards  varieties,  these  are  too  numerous  to  particularise. 
With  American  introductions,  such  as  Blanche  and  Sadie  Burpee,  the 
selection  may  be  both  varied  and  beautiful. 
A  stand  well  set  up  of  Sweet  Peas  mingled  with  light  feathery 
Grasses,  or  the  graceful  inflorescence  of  GypsophiU  paniculata,  with 
Smilax  or  i\Iaidenhair  Fern,  cannot  be  surpassed  in  beauty  by  the 
rarest  Orchids.  It  is  possible  to  secure  a  long  continuation  of  the 
flowering  period  by  keeping  the  pods  clo-ely  picked  off.  A  few  seeds 
in  9  or  10-inch  pots  sown  now  and  grown  cool  will  give  flowers  a  few 
weeks  earlier  than  those  treated  outside,  and  are  very  effective. 
I  do  not  care  for  the  dwarf  Cupids,  the  flowers  drop  so  soon  after 
opening,  besides  the  plants  being  somewhat  miffy.  I  should  be  glad  to 
know  if  that  is  the  general  opinion  of  cultivators  who  have  tried  the 
pigmies,  which  I  do  not  consider  worthy  of  space  in  the  garden. — 
A  Midland  Gardener. 
BIRMIXGHAM  GARDENERS’  ASSOCIATION. 
The  thirteenth  spring  session  of  this  Society  was  inaugurated  on  tl'.e 
30th  ult.  by  a  fairly  well  attended  meeting  of  the  members  to  listen  to  a 
dissertation  by  Mr.  John  Pope,  F.R.H  S.,  King’s  Norton,  entitled 
“Discussion  on  Pots,  Potting,  and  Soil  Mixtures.”  The  subject  embraced 
detailed  description  of  the  shapes,  quality,  and  sizes  of  pots,  also  glazed 
versus  soft  or  porous  pots,  the  former  being  much  affected  by  Auricula 
growers  especially.  Potting  and  soil  compounds  were  also  dealt  with  at 
considerable  length  ;  and  concerning  the  act  of  rapid  potting,  the  lecturer 
instanced  the  fact  that  once  when  on  a  visit  to  America,  the  late  Mr. 
Peter  Henderson  informed  him  that  one  of  his  men,  for  a  wager,  under¬ 
took  to  pot  70U0  bedding  plants,  chiefly  Verbenas,  out  of  the  propagating 
